Department for Transport

Railways: Okehampton

The Lord Bishop of Exeter: To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the successful re-opening of the railway line between Exeter and Okehampton, what plans they have to reinstate the remaining section of the line between Okehampton and Calstock to secure an alternative route to Plymouth and Cornwall; what is the timetable for any such plans; and what assessment they have made of the risk of the Great Western Railway line to (1) coastal erosion, and (2) high seas.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: My Department has invested over £120m to ensure the resilience of the Great Western line between Exeter and Plymouth. My Department is not proposing to extend the recently re-opened line between Exeter and Okehampton, to provide an alternative route to Plymouth. However, we recently announced funding to develop a Strategic Outline Business Case for a Restoring Your Railway scheme from Tavistock to Bere Alston.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Coal: Safety

Lord Wigley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of coal tips in England that (1) pose, and (2) potentially pose, a danger to nearby communities; and what is the estimated cost of addressing any such dangers.

Lord Callanan: The vast majority of disused tips in England are now in either local authority or private ownership along with the legal responsibility for preventing any danger to the public. The majority of spoil tips were transferred to the current owners following the closure of the coal industry and break up of British Coal (formerly National Coal Board) and disposal of its land. The Coal Authority own eight tips in England, and these are kept under regular inspection with an annual budget allocated to undertake any necessary maintenance and safety works.

Property: China

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Callanan on 2 November (HL3659),whether they can provide a breakdown of the 60 titles within Greater London where the registered owner is the People's Republic of China; and if so, in which London borough each is located.

Lord Callanan: HM Land Registry does not hold this information. Further details about the information that HM Land Registry holds, what is publicly available, and how it can be obtained, is set out online via the GOV.UK website.

Research: China

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many enterprises owned by the government of China (1) have contracts withHer Majesty's Government, and (2) are in receipt of UK research grants.

Lord Callanan: The Government does not make research grant awards to enterprises owned by foreign governments. UKRI takes independent decisions on the distribution of research grants between eligible UK higher education institutions and research establishments, which may themselves collaborate with international partners.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide COVID-19 vaccines with a longer expiry date to poorer nations to ensure they can be used.

Lord Callanan: The Vaccine Task Force is working closely with vaccine suppliers, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and international partners such as COVAX and UNICEF to allocate vaccines according to need, facilitate the rapid delivery of doses and maximise the shelf life available to recipients. Our approach to the 20m recently announced for donation via COVAX at the G20 in October was also previously laid out in the answer given by my Hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State to the Hon. Member for Oxford West and Abingdon on 9th November 2021 to Question 69687.

Buildings: Carbon Emissions

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure effective cross-departmental working towards the decarbonisation of the built environment in the UK.

Lord Callanan: The recently published Heat and Buildings Strategy brings together work from across Government on energy efficiency and clean heat, delivering a consistent and coherent approach across different markets, buildings and occupancy types. The Government has taken action to ensure that decision-making across government is aligned to deliver net zero, including establishing two Cabinet Committees, chaired by my Rt. Hon. Friends the Prime Minister and the COP President, to co-ordinate action across government, strengthening official-level governance, and taking new approaches to embed net zero in spending decisions.

Northern Ireland Office

IRA

Lord Empey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to discuss with the government of the Republic of Ireland the reported remarks made by Senator Michael McDowell about the decision not to investigate crimes by the Provisional Irish Republican Army that occurred before April 1998.

Lord Caine: The UK Government engages regularly with the Irish Government, on a range of matters that require or benefit from the partnership between our two countries, including legacy matters. Legacy issues are due to discussed during the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference (BIIGC) on 2 December.The UK and Irish Governments have also been undertaking a period of engagement regarding legacy issues, as announced following the BIIGC in June. During this engagement, the recent public intervention by former Attorney General and Justice Minister in Ireland, Michael McDowell, who stated that a de facto moratorium on the investigation and prosecution of IRA members exists in Ireland, has been discussed.

Attorney General

Prosecutions

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people arrested in (1) 2019, (2) 2020, (3) 2021, are awaiting a determination from the Crown Prosecution Service.

Lord Stewart of Dirleton: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the dates of arrest for suspects in cases submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service for a charging decision. This information could only be obtained by an examination of CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

Department for Education

Family Hubs: Finance

Lord Farmer: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much funding they have provided in total for family hubs since 2020; and how much of this has been allocated, broken down by fund.

Baroness Barran: At Budget, the government announced £82 million to create a network of family hubs. This is part of a wider £300 million package to transform services for parents, carers, babies and children in half of council areas across England.Further information on funding profiles and how funding will be allocated will be made available in due course.

Schools: Registration

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reasons why unregistered and illegal schools continue to operate in England.

Baroness Barran: It is a criminal offence under section 96 of the Education and Skills Act 2008 to conduct an independent educational institution unless it is registered. Section 97 of that Act permits no-notice inspections of settings believed to be operating in breach of this registration requirement.Between 1 January 2016 and 31 August 2021, 114 settings inspected under section 97 were identified as operating as an unregistered independent school. Joint work between the Department for Education and Ofsted has led to 101 of these settings changing their provision, meaning they no longer operate unlawfully, in breach of the 2008 Act. In that time, groups responsible for operating illegal settings have been successfully prosecuted five times.The department and Ofsted continue to investigate and, if needs be, prosecute those conducting any settings where intelligence or evidence suggests the operation of an unregistered school.The department consulted in 2020 on extending the registration requirement to settings that operate full time but only offer a very narrow curriculum, which are currently allowed to operate without registration. The department will respond to this consultation soon, setting out next steps. The department has also committed to taking forward measures to make it easier to investigate and prosecute such settings, including in the 2019 Integrated Communities Action Plan. The department intends to take forward such measures when a suitable legislative opportunity arises.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty Review Conference

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty's Government who they will send as representatives to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference in January 2022.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The UK is pleased that the Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference has recently been confirmed for January 2022. We are aware that the format will be different due to COVID restrictions which will have an impact on the UK's delegation. We are still awaiting details on key elements of the Review Conference programme. The UK hopes to have Ministerial attendance at the Review Conference as well as a cross Whitehall delegation.

Ethiopia: Armed Conflict

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate, if any, they have made of the number of Tigrayans who have been detained in Addis Ababa; and what assessment they have made of reports of landlords checking their tenants' identification cards, including UN staff other relief agencies.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: We are extremely concerned by reports of widespread human rights violations and abuses in Ethiopia committed by all sides to the conflict. The Minister for Africa spoke with the Ethiopian State Minister Redwan on 18 November and expressed her concern over ethnic profiling and mass arrests and detentions across the country and stressed the need for all parties to the conflict to engage in meaningful talks. The British Ambassador to Ethiopia also raised our concerns about ongoing detentions with President Sahle-Work on 12 November.The Foreign Secretary, our Ambassador in Addis Ababa and the Minister for Africa continue to raise human rights issues in our discussions with the Ethiopian Government and more broadly we have reminded all warring parties of their obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law. Our priority is to ensure that Ethiopians, irrespective of ethnicity, religion and political affiliation, receive life-saving aid and that humanitarian access to areas affected by conflict and insecurity is restored.

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit: Disqualification

Baroness Lister of Burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the increase in Universal Credit sanctions in June and July 2021; and when they plan to publish their report on the effectiveness of Universal Credit sanctions.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: No assessment has been made of the increase in Universal Credit sanctions in June and July 2021. The increase is a result of the re-introduction of conditionality following its suspension at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The sanctions rate remains low at 0.78%. We do not plan to publish a report on the sanctions evaluation as we were unable to assess the deterrent effect and therefore this research doesn’t present a comprehensive picture of sanctions

Home Office

Asylum: Immigration Controls

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the EU to replace the Dublin Agreement on asylum applications.

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government why the number of migrants sent back to Europe after travelling to the UK by boat has reduced from 289 in 2020 to five in 2021.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The UK is in discussions regarding the returns of asylum seekers to European Member States; it would not be appropriate to provide a running commentary on these negotiations.Whilst we are working to secure appropriate new return agreements with safe, third countries, we continue to return people on a case-by-case basis.Our inadmissibility provisions in the Immigration Rules give us the legal basis to declare an asylum claim as inadmissible where a person has a connection to or has passed through a safe country. The first returns on inadmissible grounds have been successfully carried out.The latest statistics which were published in August 2021, can be found on gov.uk. The next set of data is due to be published in November 2021.

Undocumented Migrants: English Channel

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what evidence they have that the majority of migrants crossing the English Channel to gain entry into the UK are part of criminal gangs; and whether they will publish that evidence.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: At no stage has the Government claimed that the majority of migrants crossing the English Channel are part of criminal gangs. What has been said is that the majority of crossings are judged to be facilitated by criminal gangs.These crossings are dangerous and unnecessary – France is a safe country with a fully-functioning asylum system, and those in need of refuge have no need to make these hazardous journeys. Those who attempt to cross are endangering themselves and those who have to rescue them. And those who facilitate them are risking the lives of others in the selfish pursuit of profit. Tragically, we have seen further deaths in the last few weeks of people trying to cross the Channel in small boats. We make no apology therefore for going after the evil people smuggling gangs who facilitate the majority of these crossings.We must ensure that those involved in people smuggling are punished with the severity it rightly deserves. The Nationality and Borders Bill will enable this and will also act as a much stronger deterrent for those tempted to pursue that despicable path. These long overdue reforms will break the business model of the criminal trafficking networks and make their activities unviable.

Older People: Crimes of Violence

Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to prevent the elderly from being attacked in their own homes.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Making our communities safer and reducing crime is a key priority for the Government, which includes protecting elderly people from crime.. That is why we are delivering on the people’s priorities by recruiting an additional 20,000 police officers to give the police the resources they need, of which 11,053 have already been recruited. We have also increased funding for policing this year by £636m compared to 20/21.In July, we published the Beating Crime Plan, which sets out our strategy for protecting the law-abiding majority, swiftly bringing criminals to justice, and managing offenders with rigour and discipline. It also commits all of Government to do everything within its power to drive crime down. Moreover, the first two rounds of the Safer Streets Fund were designed to prevent neighbourhood crimes such as burglary, robbery and theft. The fund supports communities in England and Wales that are disproportionately affected by these crimes to implement well-evidenced crime prevention initiatives, such as street lighting and home security.

Saleh Ibrahim Mabrouk

Lord Willoughby de Broke: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will apply for the extradition of Saleh Ibrahim Mabrouk from Libya, following the High Court ruling on 16 November.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Whether to seek extradition in a case is an operational decision for law enforcement and prosecution agencies. The UK Government, as a matter of longstanding policy and practice, will neither confirm nor deny whether an extradition request has been made or received until such time as an arrest has been made in relation to the request.

Migrants: Finance

Baroness Lister of Burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the No Recourse to Public Funds policy for migrants on support for families, including with childcare costs.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: To be granted leave to enter or remain in the UK, most temporary migrants must demonstrate they can maintain and support themselves and their families without recourse to public funds. There are, nonetheless, strong and important safeguards in place to ensure people subject to the NRPF condition can receive support. People with leave under the Family and Human Rights routes, and those who have been granted leave on the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa route as a British National (Overseas) status holder or a family member of a British National (Overseas) status holder can apply, for free, to have their NRPF condition lifted by making a ‘change of conditions’ application. They can apply if they are destitute or at risk of destitution, if the welfare of their child is at risk due to their low income, or where there are other exceptional financial circumstances. Local authorities are required to provide financial support and/or accommodation through section 17 of the Children Act 1989, where a child is in need, regardless of their immigration status or that of their parents. Government support for families is generally led by the Department for Work and Pensions, HMRC, and the Department for Education, and they may have conducted further assessment of the impacts of the NRPF policy.

Department of Health and Social Care

Coronavirus: Drugs

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to rollout Ronapreve as a prophylactic preventative treatment for COVID-19.

Lord Kamall: On 20 August 2021, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved Ronapreve (casirivimab and imdevimab) as the first monoclonal antibody combination product indicated for use in the prevention and treatment of acute COVID-19 infection.The current supply of Ronapreve is limited globally, therefore the clinical policy prioritises the most vulnerable hospitalised patients for whom this treatment will provide the most benefit, which is supported by the clinical evidence. There are no current plans to make Ronapreve available for prophylaxis. We also anticipate that further neutralising monoclonal antibody treatments will be submitted for evaluation for a marketing authorisation by the MHRA in the next few months. If approved, these could become available for community treatment or prevention use.

Coronavirus: Drugs

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to evaluate AZD7442 for emergency use as a preventative treatment against COVID-19; and what are the timelines for its approval.

Lord Kamall: We continue to monitor the emerging data for AstraZeneca’s long-acting antibody therapy, AZD7442. AstraZeneca are discussing potential approval for the therapy with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.We anticipate that further neutralising monoclonal antibody treatments will be submitted for evaluation for a marketing authorisation by the MHRA in the next few months. These treatments could become available for community treatment or preventative use.

Abortion: Ambulance Services

Baroness Eaton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that ambulance call-outs have risen following home use of medical abortion pills; and what steps they are taking in response.

Lord Kamall: We are considering all evidence submitted to the Government’s public consultation on whether to make permanent the temporary measure allowing for home use of both pills for early medical abortion, including evidence from ambulance services. The consultation asked questions on whether other NHS services had been affected by the temporary measure. We will publish our response in due course.

Coronavirus: Drugs

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to secure stocks of AstraZeneca's treatment AZD7442 as aprophylactic preventative therapy against COVID-19 infection.

Lord Kamall: We are unable to provide the information requested as it is commercially sensitive.The Department published a Prior information Notice in Find a Tender Service on 5 October 2021 inviting suppliers to submit an Expression of Interest on neutralising antibody treatments they are developing for treating and preventing COVID-19. The engagement enables the Department to monitor development of all neutralising monoclonal antibodies for treatment and prevention of COVID-19.

Coronavirus: Drugs

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government why patients who are immunocompromised must (1) test positive for COVID-19, (2) have no detectable antibodies for COVID-19, and (3) have been hospitalised specifically for acute symptoms of COVID-19, in order to access Ronapreve; and what plans they have to end this health inequality between immunocompromised patients and the rest of the population.

Lord Kamall: The interim clinical policy for Ronapreve (casirivimab and imdevimab) was expanded on 4 November. The clinical policy prioritises the most vulnerable hospitalised patients for whom this treatment will provide the most benefit. Patients are eligible to be considered for Ronapreve if they are hospitalised for management of symptoms of confirmed COVID-19 and negative for COVID-19 antibodies. This is based on clinical trial evidence of efficacy in this group.Patients are also eligible for Ronapreve if they have hospital-onset COVID-19 and are at high risk of progression to severe illness or if the virus presents a material risk of destabilising a pre-existing condition or compromising recovery. These patients do not need to be negative for COVID-19 antibodies. These conditions are for both immunocompromised and non-immunocompromised patients and reflect clinical trial evidence of efficacy and available supply.

Health and Care Bill

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they expect to publish the (1) Wade-Gery, and (2) Goldacre, reviews before the committee stage of the Health and Care Bill in the House of Lords.

Lord Kamall: The Wade-Gery Review was published on 23 November. The Goldacre Review will be published early in 2022, which is likely to be after Committee stage of the Bill in the House of Lords.

Coronavirus: Screening

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve the quality of lateral flow tests.

Lord Kamall: All tests are robustly assessed through laboratory validation, as precursor to procurement. To improve the quality of lateral flow tests The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has recently introduced additional criteria that devices must meet to be accepted for validation. The criteria focus on improvements to the usability, sustainability and performance of lateral flow antigen tests, compared to devices currently available. In addition, the UKHSA works with suppliers to improve the sustainability and usability of lateral flow devices, such as reducing the amount of packaging.

IVF

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Kamall on 2 November (HL3362), what were the affected genes in the mitochondrial genome and the associated mutations in each of the 24 patients licensed as eligible for mitochondrial replacement treatment; and on what dates each corresponding application was approved by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority.

Lord Kamall: The following table shows the gene affected and the mutation in the 26 patients licensed as eligible for mitochondrial donation treatment, the date each application was made and then approved by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) Statutory Approvals Committee. HFEA Application reference Gene affected by mutation Mutation Date received Date approved by the HFEA Statutory Approvals CommitteeM0001 MT-TK Details omitted to protect patient identity 28 June 2017 31 August 2017M0002 MT-TK Details omitted to protect patient identity 4 September 2017 26 October 2017M0007 MT-ND1 m.3460 G>A 13 March 2018 24 May 2018M0003 MT-TL1 Details omitted to protect patient identity 25 September 2017 26 July 2018M0005 MT-TL1 m.3243 A>G 5 December 2017 26 July 2018M0008 MT-TL1 m.3243 A>G 15 March 2018 26 July 2018M0004 MT-TK Details omitted to protect patient identity 4 December 2017 30 August 2018M0006 MT-TS1 Details omitted to protect patient identity 9 January 2018 30 August 2018M0009 MT-TI m.4300 A>G 28 June 2018 27 September 2018M0010 MT-TI m.4300 A>G 11 July 2018 27 September 2018M0013 MT-ND4 m.11778 G>A 14 July 2018 25 October 2018M0012 MT-ND1 m.3460 G>A 13 July 2018 25 October 2018M0014 MT-ND4 m.11778 G>A 23 November 2018 31 January 2019M0015 MT-ND4 m.11778 G>A 23 November 2018 31 January 2019M0011 MT-ND4 m.11778 G>A 12 July 2018 29 August 2019M0016 MT-TK m.8344 A>G 5 July 2019 26 September 2019M0017 MT-ND4 m.11778 G>A 22 August 2019 31 October 2019M0018 MT-TL1 Details omitted to protect patient identity 10 December 2019 26 March 2020M0019 MT-TL1 Details omitted to protect patient identity 10 December 2019 26 March 2020M0020 MT-TL1 Details omitted to protect patient identity 30 March 2020 25 June 2020M0021 MT-ND1 Details omitted to protect patient identity 30 March 2020 25 June 2020M0022 MT-ND1 Details omitted to protect patient identity 26 June 2020 24 September 2020M0024 MT-ND4 Details omitted to protect patient identity 9 December 2020 29 July 2021M0025 MT-ND4 Details omitted to protect patient identity 9 December 2020 29 July 2021M0026 MT-ND4 Details omitted to protect patient identity 7 June 2021 4 October 2021M0027 MT-ND1 Details omitted to protect patient identity 7 June 2021 4 October 2021 Source: HFEA

Coronavirus: Screening

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many COVID-19 test device products have been subject to desktop reviews by the UK Health Security Agency.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many suppliers of COVID-19 tests have submitted information regarding their products for desktop reviews.

Lord Kamall: As of 16 November 2021, 173 applications for COVID-19 test device products have been subject to desktop review by the UK Health Security Agency. As of 16 November, 108 suppliers have submitted information as part of the desktop review validation process. However, in order to be triaged for desktop review, every application must submit accompanying data in the first instance regarding their product. There are currently 93 COVID-19 test device product applications which are ‘pending information’, where further information has been requested from the supplier.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to test people with immunodeficiencies for their individual responses to COVID-19 vaccinations.

Lord Kamall: The UK Health Security Agency is working with a range of partners, such as the University College of London, to monitor the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccinations in clinical risk groups, including those with immunosuppression. The VirusWatch study is underway to monitor antibody response following vaccination among individuals with immunosuppression.As part of the COVID-19 Immunity National Core Study, the UK Research and Innovation OCTAVE study is examining the effectiveness of vaccines in clinically at-risk groups. This includes vaccine responses in patients with certain immunosuppressed conditions.

Health Services: Females

Baroness Grey-Thompson: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they plan to publish the Women's Health Strategy; and what plans they have to include commitments on menstrual health conditions in that strategy.

Lord Kamall: We will publish the Women’s Health Strategy in due course. We are currently analysing the responses to the call for evidence which will inform the priorities, content and actions in the Strategy. Within the call for evidence, the online survey included questions on menstrual health.

Prostate Cancer: Tomography

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many suspected prostate cancer patients in each local Cancer Alliance have undergone a multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging scan in England in each year since 2016.

Lord Kamall: The information is not held in the format requested. While the number of scans of the prostate is collected, this does not represent the number of patients or whether the purpose of the scan was for suspected cancer.

Coronavirus: Medical Treatments

Lord Framlingham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) clinical trial data showing the effectiveness of Ivermectin to treat COVID-19, and (2) the urgency of approving new treatments for COVID-19; and when they expect the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to come to a decision on approving Ivermectin for use in the UK.

Lord Kamall: Evidence from clinical trials of ivermectin as a treatment for COVID-19 is inconclusive at this stage. We will continue to monitor the data from clinical trials continuing worldwide, including the Government-funded PRINCIPLE trial, to expand the evidence base for ivermectin. We recognise the need to make treatments for COVID-19 available to patients once proven as safe and effective. The RAPID-C19 group was established to accelerate the process between the completion of clinical trials and patient access. Ivermectin will be considered for marketing authorisation in the United Kingdom as a treatment for COVID-19 should an application be received from a manufacturer.

Electronic Cigarettes: Smuggling

Lord Naseby: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to stop the importation of illegal e-cigarette products into the UK.

Lord Naseby: To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are providing to Trading Standards offices to undertake enforcement actions to ensure that illegally imported e-cigarette products are removed from the UK market.

Lord Kamall: Through the introduction of the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016, we have introduced e-cigarette product and safety standards, along with a duty to notify a product to be placed on the United Kingdom market to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Non-compliant products are subject to local trading standards enforcement. The Department continues to work closely with the MHRA, Trading Standards and other regulatory enforcement agencies to ensure that products sold in the UK comply with regulations for all e-cigarette products and the non-compliant products are removed from the market. Central funding is provided to local authorities for local trading standards activity, including illicit e-cigarettes.

Immunosuppression: Coronavirus

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people who are immunocompromised or immunosuppressed have been hospitalised due to COVID-19 in England since 2 September.

Lord Kamall: The data requested is not held centrally.

Cabinet Office

Government: China

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of government advisors who have links to, or investments in, Chinese companies; and how many Chinese companies have representatives participating in trade or business advisory groups convened by Her Majesty's Government.

Lord True: Ministers and officials meet with a wide range of stakeholders in the course of normal business. Details of all official meetings by ministers are published on the government website. Where ministers appoint specific advisers or members of an advisory group, any relevant outside interests should be declared and considered before appointments are made.

Public Bodies: Public Appointments

Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top: To ask Her Majesty's Government who they have appointed to (1) arms-length bodies, and (2) other public bodies, since 1 January; and how many of these appointments were (a) women, or (b) people from a minority background.

Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many of the people appointed to (1)arms-length bodies, and (2) other public bodies, since 1 January have a political affiliation; and which political parties they were affiliated to in each case.

Lord True: The government publishes annual data reports on public appointments, including information on gender, ethnic background and political affiliation. The latest report published on 21 October provides data on those appointed during the 2020-21 financial year and appointees in post on 31 March 2021. Data on those appointed during the 2021-22 financial year and those in post on 31 March 2022 will be published next year. Latest figures show that in 2020-21, 44% of appointees were women and 10% were from an ethnic minority background. 6% stated they had taken part in political activity in the past five years across a range of political parties. Public appointments are announced on the HM Government Public Appointments website https://publicappointments.cabinetoffice.gov.uk.

Government Departments: Equal Pay

Lord Sikka: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the ethnicity pay gap in each government department.

Lord True: There is currently no legislative requirement or set methodology for the collection and reporting of ethnicity pay data for employers. Therefore no ethnicity pay gap figures are currently available centrally. The Commission for Race and Ethnic Disparities recommended that employers report on ethnicity pay on a voluntary basis and publish a diagnosis and action plan to address any disparities. The government is carefully considering the findings of the Commission’s report and will publish its response in due course, alongside the response to the 2018/19 consultation on ethnicity pay reporting.

Government Departments: Disability

Baroness Garden of Frognal: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many disabled people are employed by each department.

Lord True: Information on the number of disabled staff by department can be found in Table 38 of the Civil Service Statistics, the latest version of which was published 28 July 2021 and is available in the Government efficiency, transparency and accountability collection on GOV.UK. The latest figures show that 13.6% of Civil Servants declare themselves as having a disability.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Ofcom: Public Appointments

Lord Jones of Cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government (1) why they have convened a new interview panel for the selection of the new chair of Ofcom, (2) why they changed the job specification for this position after the initial inconclusive appointments process, and (3) whether unsuccessful candidates from the previous appointments process are eligible to re-apply.

Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay: The previous Secretary of State decided to re-run the first competition to appoint a new Chairman of Ofcom, as he was not presented with a choice of high-quality candidates from a diverse field. This decision was supported by the Commissioner for Public Appointments, the Rt. Hon Peter Riddell CBE. The competition that was launched on 1 November 2021 is an entirely new competition and, as such, has a new advisory assessment panel. The essential criteria were amended to ensure they would attract a diverse field of applicants and these have been publicly available on the public appointments website since this process launched. The panel, whose names have also been published, will be responsible for assessing candidates objectively against these criteria.The process to appoint the new Chairman of Ofcom will be run in line with the Governance Code for Public Appointments, which means it must be a fair and open process. It would not be permitted under the code to prevent previous candidates from applying.

Public Telephones: Rural Areas

Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the importance of public telephone boxes in rural areas; and what steps they will take to ensure they are maintained in situ in areas with poor mobile signal.

Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay: The Government recognises the importance of public telephone boxes to people across the UK. The telephony Universal Service Order requires that certain providers maintain telephony services across the UK, including access to public telephone boxes.It is for Ofcom to designate the providers subject to this Order and set rules for public telephone boxes, including the rules regarding their removal. Ofcom estimates that there are 1500 public telephone boxes in areas with poor mobile coverage, many of which will be rural.Ofcom has recently announced a consultation designed to strengthen these rules. Ofcom’s proposals include a criterion that protects public telephone boxes where they do not have coverage from all four mobile network providers.